Man sentenced to 26 years on heroin charges

Published: Thursday, July 18, 2013 at 11:43 a.m.

Last Modified: Thursday, July 18, 2013 at 11:43 a.m.

A Wilmington man was sentenced to 26 years in prison Thursday on heroin distribution charges in which prosecutors allege he dealt heroin for three years in the Port City.

Titus Terrell Grady, 26, pleaded guilty March 4 to a charge of conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin. In exchange for the plea, charges of distribution of PCP and distribution of heroin were dismissed. Grady was sentenced in U.S. District Court in Raleigh by Chief Judge James C. Dever III.

Grady was one of four people arrested Feb. 9, 2012, during a Wilmington Police Department operation that yielded three grams of raw heroin, 32 bags of PCP, a large amount of drug paraphernalia and packaging material, and 110 bags of heroin packaged for sale.

Grady has a lengthy criminal record in North Carolina dating back to 2004 with convictions for drug possession, simple assault and reckless driving. At the time of his arrest by the Wilmington Police Department, he was out on bail on the federal charges for which he was sentenced Thursday. The February arrest was then absorbed by the federal case.

“Mr. Grady's case is the latest example of our efforts to remove the most violent gang members from our community and put them in prison for decades. We applaud the judge's decision to give Mr. Grady a year in prison for every year he's been alive to send a strong message that this behavior will not be tolerated,” said New Hanover County District Attorney Ben David. David's Assistant District Attorney Timothy Severo handled the case on the federal level as part of his appointment at the U.S. Department of Justice.

“You can look at several cases that we are taking federally right now -- whether it's gun cases or drug cases -- and we are going to continue to pick the venue that's going to get these guys a maximum sentence,” David said.

<p>A Wilmington man was sentenced to 26 years in prison Thursday on heroin distribution charges in which prosecutors allege he dealt heroin for three years in the Port City. </p><p>Titus Terrell Grady, 26, pleaded guilty March 4 to a charge of conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin. In exchange for the plea, charges of distribution of PCP and distribution of heroin were dismissed. Grady was sentenced in U.S. District Court in Raleigh by Chief Judge James C. Dever III. </p><p>Grady was one of four people arrested Feb. 9, 2012, during a Wilmington Police Department operation that yielded three grams of raw heroin, 32 bags of PCP, a large amount of drug paraphernalia and packaging material, and 110 bags of heroin packaged for sale. </p><p>Grady has a lengthy criminal record in North Carolina dating back to 2004 with convictions for drug possession, simple assault and reckless driving. At the time of his arrest by the Wilmington Police Department, he was out on bail on the federal charges for which he was sentenced Thursday. The February arrest was then absorbed by the federal case.</p><p>“Mr. Grady's case is the latest example of our efforts to remove the most violent gang members from our community and put them in prison for decades. We applaud the judge's decision to give Mr. Grady a year in prison for every year he's been alive to send a strong message that this behavior will not be tolerated,” said New Hanover County District Attorney <a href="http://www.starnewsonline.com/section/topic80"><b>Ben David</b></a>. David's Assistant District Attorney Timothy Severo handled the case on the federal level as part of his appointment at the U.S. Department of Justice. </p><p>“You can look at several cases that we are taking federally right now -- whether it's gun cases or drug cases -- and we are going to continue to pick the venue that's going to get these guys a maximum sentence,” David said. </p><p></p><p>F.T. Norton: 343-2070</p><p>On <a href="http://www.starnewsonline.com/section/news41"><b>Twitter</b></a>: @FTNorton</p>